Halifax court gets first look at rare Canadian crime: kidnapping for ransom

On Tuesday, onlookers at Halifax provincial court got their first look at a man accused of that rarest of Canadian crimes: a kidnapping for ransom.

He was a mere teenager; a 19-year-old from across the harbour in Dartmouth. And far from cutting a fearsome underworld image, the man is not “known to police” — the typical shorthand for a career criminal.

Either way, whoever it was that donned black clothes and stormed into the mansion of one of Halifax’s richest men, kidnapping was certainly not his strong suit.

Just after 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 16, a man in black mask and black jacket pulled up outside 6400 Oakland Rd., grabbed an assault rifle and a pistol, and went inside. His target was homeowner Brad Langille, a wealthy gold mining executive.

When he came face to face with the millionaire, the masked man said, “You need to come with me right now,” Mr. Langille told Halifax’s Chronicle Herald the day after the incident. “And my intent was, I’m not going with him,” Mr. Langille added.

Related

The burly mining executive fought off the slim intruder “without injury,” read a police statement — and also activated a panic button wired to the home’s substantial security system. Neighbours spotted the intruder as he fled.

But he was long gone by the time police K9 units were on scene; investigators discovered that, in his haste, he had dropped his sidearm. To outward appearances it was a 9mm pistol, but in reality the weapon was an airsoft replica capable of firing only plastic pellets.

Speaking to reporters massed outside the mansion the next day, Mr. Langille said he was “OK” and that he was beefing up security.

Incredibly, six days later the hapless kidnapper returned with the exact same game plan: Force his way into the house in daylight, brandish a fake firearm and take Mr. Langille hostage.

This time, the mining executive was ready. As soon as the masked man stepped onto the property, a newly posted security detail stood ready to tackle him.

“They were able to physically take control of him, and when we arrived, we arrested him,” said Const. Pierre Bourdages, spokesman for the Halifax Regional Police. They also seized his second gun: a replica assault rifle, also capable of firing only small plastic pellets.

A resident of Portland Hills Drive, a respectable suburban street in Dartmouth, the accused, Aaron MacDonald, is facing kidnapping, break and enter and weapons charges, not to mention “disguise with intent.” A prospector, pilot and former wholesaler, Mr. Langille made his fortune as co-founder of Gammon Gold Inc. and Mexgold Resources Inc., where he helped develop two Mexican gold mines.

The suspect did not seem to have had any particular “beef” with Mr. Langille, said Const. Bourdages. “There’s no reason to believe there’s any connection between the two,” he said.

Likely, he selected 6400 Oakland Rd. simply because it was one of the toniest houses in town.

The home is 15 minutes’ walk from downtown and just steps from Dalhousie University. Since Confederation, the surrounding neighbourhood has hosted Halifax’s wealthy — but Mr. Langille’s ultra-modern glass-and-concrete home dwarfs even the grandest 19th-century brick mansion.

Largely hidden from the road, it towers over Northwest Arm, a small inlet off Halifax Harbour frequented by sailboats and pleasure craft. Any boat setting out to sea from the city’s Armdale Yacht Club passes right by the landmark residence.

In 1934, beer magnate John Sackville Labatt became the target of Canada’s first documented ransom kidnapping when he was abducted at gunpoint by a gang of former rum runners. He was released after three days when the kidnappers panicked at all the media attention they had generated.

In 1990 two men kidnapped the daughter of Vancouver billionaire Jim Pattison, releasing her after Mr. Pattison paid a $200,000 ransom. The kidnappers were quickly nabbed, however, after they were spotted spending their ill-gotten gains on a shopping spree.